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In Christ, Mark
In Christ, Mark
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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
The word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, prophesy and
say, ‘This is what the Lord says:”
“‘A sword, a sword, sharpened and polished—sharpened for the
slaughter, polished to flash like lightning!”
“‘Shall we rejoice in the scepter of my royal son? The sword
despises every such stick.”
“‘The sword is appointed to be polished, to be grasped with
the hand; it is sharpened and polished, made ready for the hand of the slayer. Cry
out and wail, son of man, for it is against My people; it is against all the
princes of Israel. They are thrown to the sword along with My people. Therefore
beat your breast.”
“Testing will surely come. And what if even the scepter,
which the sword despises, does not continue?” declares the Sovereign Lord.
Ezekiel 21:8-13
This ends today’s
reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
Once the people of God had taken their place in the Promised
Land, God made sure they had leaders who would guide and direct them in the
right ways, the ways that would be pleasing in His sight. This is because those
leaders were appointed and ordained by Him, leaders who came to be known as
“judges.”
Well, anyone with knowledge of Old Testament events knows
that the Israelites came to a point where they wanted to change the way they
were led. Other nations who surrounded them had kings, not judges, and so the
Israelites petitioned to have a king to rule over them as well. You’ll recall
that God tried to convince them this was a bad idea but His people failed to
listen, insisting that they have a king and so it would be. They got their
first king who bore the name of Saul and things went mostly downhill from
there.
You see, a majority of the kings were not really appointed
or anointed by God. Rather, they ascended to the throne because of their
lineage, typically the oldest son rising to power to take the place of their
deceased father. And unfortunately, a majority of these kings were evil and
openly sinned against God, encouraging their people to do likewise with the
most prevalent transgression being false worship of pagan gods and idols.
This spiritual unfaithfulness led the Israelites down a
slippery slope toward God’s judgment for He had forewarned His people that He
was a jealous God who would take action against anyone who opposed Him. And
there could be no greater act of opposition toward God than choosing to abandon
Him to bow down and adore other deities.
We know that God tried to warn His people through numerous
prophets about punishment that would come if they did not repent, turn from
their sinful ways, and choose life over death through once again becoming
obedient to God. But the Israelites decided not to heed those warnings. In
fact, through their actions, it was as if they dared God to do something about
their behavior.
And so God did just that and He started by telling them four
terrifying words:
“I am against you.”
As we look at today’s scripture passage, we find the word of
God providing us with more frightening imagery in regard to God coming against
His people:
The word of the Lord
came to me: “Son of man, prophesy and say, ‘This is what the Lord says:”
“‘A sword, a sword,
sharpened and polished—sharpened for the slaughter, polished to flash like
lightning!”
“‘Shall we rejoice in
the scepter of my royal son? The sword despises every such stick.”
“‘The sword is
appointed to be polished, to be grasped with the hand; it is sharpened and
polished, made ready for the hand of the slayer. Cry out and wail, son of man,
for it is against My people; it is against all the princes of Israel. They are
thrown to the sword along with My people. Therefore beat your breast.”
“Testing will surely
come. And what if even the scepter, which the sword despises, does not
continue?” declares the Sovereign Lord. Ezekiel 21:8-13
Note here that on one side, we have God, portrayed as the
mighty Warrior who has His sharpened, polished sword ready to exact judgment.
On the other side, the side of the Israelites, we find the “scepter of the
royal son” or the power Judah assumed it had under the rule of its king. God
has no regard for His nation or its people anymore for He ensures they know
that “the sword despises every such stick.”
Ultimately, if God’s people wanted to oppose God, then they
got what they asked for. He was no longer their great Deliverer or Protector.
Rather, He was the Instigator and Initiator of their punishment and correction,
the One who was against His people which included the princes of Israel.
In the end translation, the Israelites were going to come to
God one way or another. They could do so willingly and willfully (the easy way)
or God would put them in circumstances where He would come against them and they
would experience His power and wrath, crying out to be forgiven so they could
return to His favor and blessings once again (obviously, the hard way).
With this, what’s it going to take for nations today,
nations who have in so many instances placed their hope and trust in human
rulers more than the Lord God Almighty?
Will nations return to the Lord and honor Him as the true
King of kings and Lord of lords, submitting to His authority and following His
word, will, and way in uncompromising obedience?
Or will God once again have to assert Himself, coming
against His people to once again show them He is the One who is truly in
control and in charge, just as He has been since He breathed life into
creation?
One way or another, the nations of this world will come back
to the Lord and bow before Him, whether they opt for the easy or hard way.
Amen
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
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